Okafor leads Huskies over Notre Dame

Josh Boone chipped in 12 points and 11 boards for the Huskies (21-5, 9-3 Big
East). Denham Brown and Rashad Anderson had 12 points apiece for Connecticut,
which has won two in a row and six of its last eight contests.

Connecticut took control early, scoring the first 10 points of the game. The
Fighting Irish did not score until Jordan Cornette nailed a three-point shot
with 13:33 left in the opening half.

Notre Dame was able to close within 18-14 on two free throws by Torrian
Jones. However, the Huskies responded with a another 10-0 spurt, keyed by four
points from Okafor, to take a 14-point advantage with 4:24 left in the first
half.

Connecticut eventually carried a 31-19 lead into the locker room. The Huskies
were 13-of-34 from the floor in the first half, while the Fighting Irish made
just 6-of-32 field goal attempts.

Notre Dame rallied in the second half and cut the deficit to four points on
several occasions, the last time at 46-42 on a jumper by Thomas with 8:48
remaining.

Connecticut then countered with an 11-2 spurt, keyed by Anderson’s three-
pointer, to grab a commanding 57-44 advantage with just 3:19 left.

The Fighting Irish got no closer than nine points the rest of the way.